'Exhausted' Kanye West hospitalised, cancels tour after bizarre rants

Rapper Kanye West was hospitalised on Monday and reported to be suffering from exhaustion hours after he abruptly cancelled the remainder of his tour following a week of no-shows, curtailed concerts and rants about politics.

A source told People that West, 39, was "exhausted and currently dealing with sleep deprivation" but that he was "fine." NBC News and other outlets said he was hospitalised in Los Angeles after police responded to a medical welfare call.

A source told the magazine that West was not restrained and that "he went freely" to hospital.

The Los Angeles Police Department confirmed it responded to a report of disturbance but the incident was deemed a "medical emergency".

"An adult male described as medically stable was taken to an area hospital for assessment."

Reuters could not independently confirm the hospitalisation.

Before reports emerged of West's hospitalisation, his mother-in-law and Keeping Up with the Kardashians matriarch, Kris Jenner, told reporters on the red carpet at The Angel Ball in New York that the singer was "exhausted".

West's wife Kim Kardashian was also expected to appear at the New York ball, a fundraiser for cancer research where her late father Robert Kardashian was honoured, but did not attend. It would have marked her first public appearance since she was robbed at gunpoint in Paris in early October.

Concert promoters Live Nation said in a statement on Monday that the remaining 21 US dates on West's Saint Pablo tour had been cancelled, and that tickets would be fully refunded.

Live Nation gave no reasons, fueling speculation about the state of West's mental and physical health. A source close to the Gold Digger singer denied West was having some kind of breakdown, telling celebrity outlets People and Us Weekly that West was a workaholic who was simply worn out.

"He's just exhausted. He's been working around the clock on fashion design, both on his own line and the Adidas line. He's a notorious workaholic, so balancing both that work - which is extremely important to him - and the rigors of the tour every night, it really wore him out," a source told People.

The tour cancellation followed a demanding three months for West, who unveiled the new season of his Yeezy fashion line with an elaborate performance art event in September in New York.

He cancelled a concert in Los Angeles at the last minute on Sunday, and on Saturday walked off stage in Sacramento, California after 30 minutes during which he took aim at Beyonce, Jay Z, the media, and the music industry in general.

West later flooded his Instagram account with dozens of photos of fashion items.

Billboard magazine estimated that the tour cancellation would mean $27 million in ticket refunds and untold amounts in other tour expenses.

In 2006, he posed as Jesus Christ on the cover of Rolling Stone magazine, and earlier this year he released a music video for "Famous" featuring portrayals of nude celebrities including Trump, Swift and comedian Bill Cosby lying asleep in bed with him.